MCL 270
Introduction Folklore
Spring 11
TR 2-3:15
CB 247
Jeanmarie Rouhier-Willoughby
Office: POT 1061
Telephone: 7-1756
Office Hours: M 12-2, T 3:30-4:30 and by appt.
web page: http://www.uky.edu/~jrouhie/
e-mail: j.rouhier@uky.edu
Course Description: Introduces the forms and functions of folklore and mythology, with particular emphasis on the
Americas. Folklore opens up questions about the relationship of tradition to modernization, individualism, and
community. The course explains how folklore is fundamental to human lives and relates these cultural traditions to
identities and values in contemporary society. We give attention particularly to methods of ethnography and field
collection to uncover symbols, structures, and functions in expressive culture. Satisfies the UK Course Intellectual Inquiry
in the Humanities requirement.
Student Learning Outcomes:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
Articulate the central issues of folklore and cultural studies, with particular focus on US lore.
Describe what folklorists do and how their work is relevant to understanding of culture.
Explain and apply major approaches to folklore.
Recognize how cultures establish categories and structures relevant to their understanding of the world.
Determine how cultural categories and structures are shared or differ between cultures.
Demonstrate analytical skills through written analyses of cultural data.
Perform ethical and accurate collection of folklore data.
Required Texts:
1) Eliot Oring. 1986. Folk Groups and Folklore Genres: An Introduction (referred to in daily schedule as Oring 1)
2) Eliot Oring. 1989. Folk Groups and Folklore Genres: A Reader (referred to in daily schedule as Oring 2)
Additional Materials:
1) Bascom, William. “Four Functions of Folklore,” Journal of American Folklore 67
(1954): 333-49. Available on Blackboard.
2) Bronner, Simon. Excerpts from Folk Nation: Folklore in the Creation of American Tradition. Lanham, MD:
Rowman and Littlefield, 2002. Available on Blackboard.
3) Dundes, Alan. “Who are the Folk?” in Interpreting Folklore, pp. 1-19. Bloomington: Indiana University
Press, 1980. Available on Blackboard.
4) Films: Available at http://www.folkstreams.net/ (links follow each film citation below).
1) Ave Maria: The Story of the Fisherman’s Feast. Beth Harrington. 1989. (Color, 27 minutes)
Documents one of the most important traditions of Boston's Italian-Americans: annual celebration of the Feast of the
Madonna del Soccorso, popularly known as the Fisherman's Feast. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,229
2) Buck Season at Bear Meadows Sunset. George Hornbein, Kenneth Thigpen. 1984. (Color, 26 minutes)
A portrait of a hunting camp in northern Appalachia, the men who hunt there, and the traditions they keep alive. The men
hunt the old way: they drive the deer. They keep the traditions of their grandfathers' camp alive in the stories they tell and
the way they hunt. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,100
3) Cajun Country. Alan Lomax. 1991. (Color, 56 minutes)
Alan Lomax's wonderful documentary about the bayous of Louisiana which have combined French, German, West
Indian, native American and hillbilly ingredients into a unique cultural gumbo. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,125
4) Finnish American Lives. Michael Loukinen. 1982. (Color, 45 minutes)
A 1982 portrait of traditional Finnish American culture in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, highlighting the fragile
community of memory connecting one with parents and grandparents. A Michael Loukinen production from Up North
Films. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,35
5) Give My Poor Heart Ease: Mississippi Delta Bluesmen. Bill Ferris. 1975. (Color, 21 minutes)
A 1975 account of the blues experience through the recollections and performances of B.B. King, James "Son" Thomas,
Shelby "Poppa Jazz" Brown, James "Blood" Shelby, Cleveland "Broom Man" Jones, and inmates from Parchman prison.
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,80
6) I Ain’t Lyin’: Folktales from Mississippi. Bill Ferris. 1975. (Color, 22 minutes)
Documentary based on fieldwork William Ferris conducted with African American storytellers and bluesmen in the
communities of Leland and Rose Hill, Mississippi. The stories include include folk and religious tales, jokes, toast telling
sessions, and characters from African American oral tradition. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,87
7) In Jesus’ Name: Taking Up Serpents. Al Clayton. 1991. (Black and White, 47 minutes)
Snake handling services in Alabama and Georgia. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,232
8) Madison County Project: Documenting the Sound. Martha King, Rob Roberts. 2005. (Color, 24 minutes)
Madison County Project: Documenting the Sound examines the tradition of unaccompanied ballad singing in Madison
County, North Carolina and how both documentary work and the power of family and community have influenced that
tradition. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,120
9) The Men Who Dance the Giglio. Jeff Porter. 2000. (Color, 28 minutes)
A documentary on the Brooklyn St. Paulinus Festival. This film explores ethnicity, cultural traditions, and religious
devotion as the performers, participants, and community members explain the significance of the festival.
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,146
10) Pizza, Pizza Daddy-O. Bob Eberlein, Bess Lomax Hawes. 1968. (Color, 18 minutes)
PIZZA PIZZA DADDY-O (1967) looks at continuity and change in girl's playground games at a Los Angeles school.
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,73
11) Popovich Brothers of South Chicago. Jill Godmilow, Martin Koenig, Ethel Raim. 1978. (Color, 59 minutes)
Filmmaker Jill Godmilow (with folklorists Ethel Raim and Martin Koenig) made this film in 1977 when there was a
community of 1100 Serbian-Americans families in South Chicago. They worked in steel mills, drove trucks, taught
school, played tennis and golf, watched television, and went to church on Sunday. But what connected them to their
family, church and community and provided the deepest expression of their identity was their traditional Serbian music
and the Popovich Brothers were a constant source of that music. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,40
12) Rattlesnakes: A Festival in Cross Forks, PA. George Hornbein, Kenneth Thigpen. 1992. (Color, 24 minutes)
The annual rattlesnake bagging contest at this tiny Appalachian festival includes a parade, a fair, firefighters’ contests, and
a greased pig chase. A George Hornbein/Ken Thigpen film. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,117
13) Salamanders: A Night at the Phi Delt House. George Hornbein, Marie Hornbein, Tom Keiter, Kennet Thigpen. 1982.
(Color, 12 minutes)
An annual, weekend party at a college fraternity, which includes swallowing live salamanders develops into a competition
among coeds that has sexual overtones. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,113
14) The Sea Bright Skiff: Working on the Jersey Shore. Rita Moonsammy, Louis Presti. 1991. (Color, 28 minutes)
The Sea Bright-style skiff dates back to the mid 1800s along the North Jersey Shore. Charles Hankins still hand-crafts
these boats of New Jersey cedar and green oak, though they no longer serve as fishing vessels. He demonstrates the
process of building the skiff, step by step. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,41
15) Steppin’. M.J. Bowling, Jerald B. Harkness. 1992. (Color, 55 minutes)
Introduces viewers to the step show, an exciting dance style popular today among black fraternities and sororities. In
addition to many rousing, crowd-pleasing performances, the program examines the cultural roots of steppin' in African
dancing, military marching and hip-hop music, and discusses its contemporary social significance on college campuses.
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,134
16) Tales of the Supernatural. Sharon R. Sherman. 1970. (Black and White, 26 minutes)
This film documents a group of teenagers telling urban legends, ghost stories and horror tales. The film explores how
teenagers transmit horror stories, what the functions of such stories are for teenagers and the connection between
transmission and function in the telling of tales. The film also relates these legends to media images.
http://www.folkstreams.net/film,106
17) Two Homes, One Heart: Sacramento Sikh Women and their Dances and Songs. Joyce Middlebrook. 1992. (Color, 26
minutes) Sikhs in Northern California celebrate special events with Giddha and Bhangra, songs and dances from their
native land, Punjab, India. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,108
Course Requirements:
Class Participation
Discussion Board Assignments (10)
Film Responses (7)
Collection Project
Ethnography Project
Grading Scale:
15%
10%
25%
20%
30%
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
59% or below
A
B
C
D
E
Reading Assignments: You are responsible for the assignments given below in the daily syllabus. You should read the
material BEFORE the class in which we will cover it, so that you will be prepared to discuss it. Not being prepared will
adversely affect your class participation grade, which will be assessed daily through graded in-class writing and
discussion assignments. The material in the readings/viewings is only the basis for class discussion. Therefore, you are
also responsible for the material covered in class, which may not be in the readings/viewings.
Class Participation: Along with regular attendance, I expect your regular and full participation in classroom discussions.
Needless to say, your ability to participate regularly and fully in class discussions will be greatly improved by your
conscientious preparation of the required readings BEFORE the session in which we will discuss it. Not being prepared
will adversely affect your class participation grade, which will be assessed daily through graded in-class writing and
discussion assignments. Class participation will be assessed as follows:
5
4
3
2
0
Student is completely prepared to answer or attempt to answer all questions (written or oral) and participate in the
discussion/in-class exercises actively and thoughtfully (and considerately).
Student is partially prepared to do the above.
Student is minimally prepared to do the above.
Student is completely unprepared to do the above.
Student is absent
Discussion Board Assignments: Every week, on Thursday (starting January 26), I will be asking a question for reflection
on the general theme of the following week’s topics. By no later than the following Sunday at noon, you are to submit a
brief written answer on the Discussion Board of the BB site. These will be compiled and used as examples for the
following lectures.
Film Responses: You will also be viewing films on various genres of American folklore. Transcripts of the films are also
available and it helps to read them as well. You will write responses to the films, addressing the following questions: Ask
yourself who, what, where, when, how and why: What is the folklore? What is its story? Who was involved? Who is
sharing it/participating in it? What group does it belong to? When do they use it? Where does it take place? Why did it
happen? When is it meaningful to them? Explain why what you have viewed is folklore, applying the definitions and
descriptions covered in the readings and in class. How does it conform to or contradict the issues we have discussed with
regard to the topic?
Discussion board assignments and film responses will be assessed as follows:
5
4
3
2
0
Student has demonstrated mastery of the concepts/theory under consideration, familiarity the materials and class
discussion. The response is original, well-thought out, written and/or organized and supported with
examples/data.
Student has demonstrated some mastery of the concepts/theory under consideration, some familiarity the readings
and class discussion. The response is less original, well-thought out, written and organized. It is supported with
some examples/data, but not all points are adequately supported.
Student has demonstrated minimal mastery of the concepts/theory under consideration, minimal familiarity with
the readings and/or the class discussion. The response reiterates a common interpretation, is minimally wellthought out, written and/or organized and is supported with minimal examples.
Student has demonstrated no mastery of the concepts/theory under consideration, no familiarity the readings, the
class discussion and other students' responses. The response is not original, well-thought out, written and/or
organized or contains no support from examples/data.
Student does not submit the assignment or submits it late.
Projects: I distribute (and post to BB) the assignments as soon as we have covered the relevant material. The project
assignments will have a separate assessment rubric. The two project assignments will illustrate different foci and
approaches to folklore. The first will be a collection assignment (collect five samples of lore, document them and do a
discussion of them from the point of view of the literary approach to folklore). The second will be an ethnographic
assignment, for which you will present an analysis of a practice or narrative as a whole, focusing on the relation between
the setting, time and place that mark it as a special cultural scene for a given group of practitioners. Students will be
required to do library research for both projects, citing sources properly in a bibliography.
Mid-term Grade (for 100-400 level courses, and for undergraduates in 500 level courses)
Mid-term grades will be posted in myUK by the deadline established in the Academic Calendar
(http://www.uky.edu/Registrar/AcademicCalendar.htm)
Submission of Assignments: Project papers and film responses are due IN CLASS in a double spaced, 12 pt., 1”
margin, hard copy no later than 2:00. Late papers will not be accepted without documentation of an excused absence (see
below). Discussion board assignments are due (as noted above) no later than noon on the Sunday after assigned on the BB
Discussion Board.
Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. More than two unexcused absences will lower your grade by one full grade. If
you miss a class session for any reason, it is your responsibility to find out what was covered in that session and ensure
that you understand the material covered. Get notes from your classmates and/or come to see me to find out what you
missed. In addition, I expect everyone to come to class on time and to stay for the full duration of the class session. If you
are absent from class for one of the following reasons on a day when an assignment is collected, you must make
arrangements with me within one week of your absence to arrange for making up that work and bring appropriate
documentation of the reason you missed class. If you are absent from class for any other reason on a day when an
assignment is collected, you will not be allowed to make up that work and it will be assigned a grade of "0" ("zero").
Students may be asked to verify their absences in order for them to be considered excused. Senate Rule 5.2.4.2 states that
faculty have the right to request “appropriate verification” when students claim an excused absence because of illness or
death in the family. Appropriate notification of absences due to university-related trips is required prior to the absence.
Making up missed work: Make-up work will only be allowed when the work is missed for one of the reasons listed in
University Faculty Senate Rule 5.2.4.2 (September 2009) as “excused absences”:
“A. Significant illness of the student or serious illness of a member of the student's household (permanent or campus) or
immediate family. The Instructor of Record shall have the right to request appropriate verification.”
“B. The death of a member of the student's household (permanent or campus) or immediate family. The Instructor of
Record shall have the right to request appropriate verification. For the purpose of this rule, immediately family is defined
as spouse or child or parent (guardian) or sibling (all of the previous include steps, halves and in-laws of the same
relationship); and grandchild or grandparent”
“C. Trips for members of student organizations sponsored by an educational unit, trips for University classes, and trips for
participation in intercollegiate athletic events, including club sports registered with the university as well as varsity sports.
When feasible, the student must notify the Instructor of Record prior to the occurrence of such absences, but in no case
shall such notification occur more than one week after the absence. Instructors of Record may request formal notification
from appropriate university personnel to document the student's participation in such trips.”
“D. Major Religious Holidays. Students are responsible for notifying the Instructor of Record in writing of anticipated
absences due to their observance of such holidays no later than the last day for adding a class.”
“E. Any other circumstances which the Instructor of Record finds reasonable cause for absence.”
Academic Integrity: Per university policy, students shall not plagiarize, cheat, or falsify or misuse academic records.
Students are expected to adhere to University policy on cheating and plagiarism in all courses. The minimum penalty for
a first offense is a zero on the assignment on which the offense occurred. If the offense is considered severe or the student
has other academic offenses on their record, more serious penalties, up to suspension from the university may be imposed.
Plagiarism and cheating are serious breaches of academic conduct. Each student is advised to become familiar
with the various forms of academic dishonesty as explained in the Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
Complete information can be found at the following website: http://www.uky.edu/Ombud. A plea of ignorance is
not acceptable as a defense against the charge of academic dishonesty. It is important that you review this
information as all ideas borrowed from others need to be properly credited.
Part II of Student Rights and Responsibilities (available online
http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Code/part2.html) states that all academic work, written or otherwise,
submitted by students to their instructors or other academic supervisors, is expected to be the result of their own
thought, research, or self-expression. In cases where students feel unsure about the question of plagiarism
involving their own work, they are obliged to consult their instructors on the matter before submission.
When students submit work purporting to be their own, but which in any way borrows ideas, organization,
wording or anything else from another source without appropriate acknowledgement of the fact, the students are
guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism includes reproducing someone else’s work, whether it be a published article,
chapter of a book, a paper from a friend or some file, or something similar to this. Plagiarism also includes the
practice of employing or allowing another person to alter or revise the work which a student submits as his/her
own, whoever that other person may be.
Students may discuss assignments among themselves or with an instructor or tutor, but when the actual work is
done, it must be done by the student, and the student alone. When a student’s assignment involves research in
outside sources of information, the student must carefully acknowledge exactly what, where and how he/she
employed them. If the words of someone else are used, the student must put quotation marks around the passage
in question and add an appropriate indication of its origin. Making simple changes while leaving the organization,
content and phraseology intact is plagiaristic. However, nothing in these Rules shall apply to those ideas which
are so generally and freely circulated as to be a part of the public domain (Section 6.3.1).
Please note: Any assignment you turn in may be submitted to an electronic database to check for plagiarism.E-mail: You
must have a UK e-mail account, and I will use that account for communication related to this class.
Classroom Etiquette/Other Policies; Students are expected to behave with respect toward other students and to the
professor. You should not talk over others, insult them or their ideas, raise your voice, sleep, write in your planner, do
puzzles, read newspapers or other material unrelated to the class. These behaviors will not only result in a reduced class
participation grade, but if persistent, will result in consultation with the Dean of Students, which may result in removal
from the class.
Lateness will not be tolerated. If you are not in the classroom when class begins, you will lose class participation points
for each instance. After two instances of lateness, you will receive a 0 in class participation for any further instances of
lateness.
You may not use cell phones or computers (exceptions will be made for students with a disability who provide proper
documentation). If I see or hear a cell phone or computer (or any other electronic device), students will receive a 0 for
class participation that day.
You must have a UK email account, which I will use to communicate with you about course information and events on
campus related to the course.
If you are having trouble with an assignment or with a concept, please let me know, either during class or office hours.
Questions are always welcome.
Disability Policy: If you have a documented disability that requires academic accommodations, please see me as soon as
possible during scheduled office hours. In order to receive accommodations in this course, you must provide me with a
Letter of Accommodation from the Disability Resource Center (Room 2, Alumni Gym, 257‐2754, email:
jkarnes@email.uky.edu) for coordination of campus disability services.
Expectations from the professor: This class requires a great deal of reading, writing and class participation. I have high
standards for my classes and for the students in them. I also have high standards for myself.
I will return your assignments, graded and with comments, within a week. In order for you to have the weekend to
work on the papers, they are generally due on Tuesdays. As a result, I cannot have them read the same week, since I also
need a weekend to grade.
I will be at my office hours. If I have to cancel office hours, I will email changes and will offer alternate times to
ensure that I am in my office at least 3 hours a week.
I will make appointments with you if you cannot meet with me during office hours and will always try to answer
questions in class and outside of it.
I will NOT read drafts of your projects, but I encourage you to meet with me to discuss your ideas.
I will be flexible regarding deadlines (within reason), but a majority of the class must agree for a deadline to be
changed. Once a deadline is set, you should expect all work to be due by class time (or in the case of discussion board
assignments by Sunday at noon). I will not accept any work that is late, even by five minutes.
I will give you two opportunities for extra credit to increase your project grade. These opportunities will be posted
on the Course Information portion of the BB site under extra credit. Check it often to see updates. Each extra credit
assignment is worth a maximum of 5 points.
Daily Syllabus
R 1/12
Introduction to the course: folklore versus folkloristics
T 1/17
Fundamental Issues
BEFORE CLASS READ: Bascom and Dundes **(on Blackboard site); Oring 1, pp. 1-22
View Salamanders: A Night at the Phi Delt House and Steppin’
R 1/19
Fundamental Issues
**First Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response as outlined above.
T 1/24
Fundamental Issues
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 2, pp. 1-20, 38-51
R 1/26
Fundamental Issues
T 1/31
Documenting Folklore
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 225-254; Oring 2, pp. 339-349 & 358-373
View Rattlesnakes: A Festival in Cross Forks, PA and Pizza, Pizza, Daddy-O
R 2/2
Documenting Folklore
**Second Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response as outlined above.
T 2/7
Is there American Folklore? What is American about it? What role has folklore played in the (post-)
modern US?
BEFORE CLASS READ: Bronner, Folk Nation, pp. 3-64, 105-43, 199-223, 265-283 **(on BB site)
R 2/9
Is there American Folklore? What is American about it? What role has folklore played in the (post-)
modern US?
T 2/14
Ethnic Groups and Ethnic Folklore
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 23-44; Oring 2, pp. 63-86
View Finnish-American Lives, Two Homes, One Heart: Sacramento Sikh Women and their Songs and
Dances, and Cajun Country
R 2/16
Ethnic Groups and Ethnic Folklore
**Third Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response.
T 2/21
Occupational Folklore
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 71-89; Oring 2, pp. 137-157
R 2/23
Occupational Folklore
**Collection Project due
T 2/28
Religious Folklore
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 45-69; Oring 2, pp. 99-123
View Ave Maria: The Story of the Fisherman’s Feast, The Men Who Dance the Giglio, In Jesus’ Name:
Taking Up Serpents
R 3/1
Religious Folklore and Folk Rites
**Fourth Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response.
**Ethnography project proposal due
T 3/6
Children’s Folklore
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 91-120
R 3/8
Folk groups and you
**Ethnography project proposal due
3/12-3/17
Spring Break
T 3/20
Folk Narratives
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 121-145; Oring 2, 209-235
View I Ain’t Lyin’: Folktales from Mississippi and Tales of the Supernatural
R 3/22
Folk Narratives
**Fifth Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response.
T 3/27
Visiting lecturer: Lynwood Montell, KY Folklorist, storytelling session
R 3/29
No class-I’ll be at the Southern Conference on Slavic Studies
T 4/3
Ballads and Folksongs
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 147-174; Oring 2, pp. 254-266, 271-278
View Madison County Project: Documenting the Sound, Give My Poor Heart Ease, Popovich Brothers of
South Chicago
R 4/5
Ballads and Folksongs
**Sixth Film Response due. Pick one of the films for last week and write a response.
T 4/10
Folk Objects and Folk Customs, and Beliefs
BEFORE CLASS READ: Oring 1, pp. 199-223; Oring 2, pp. 320-338
View Buck Season at Bear Meadows Sunset and The Sea Bright Skiff: Working the Jersey Shore
R 4/12
Folk Objects
**Seventh Film Response due. Pick one of the films for this week and write a response.
T 4/17
Course wrap up
R 4/19
Work on final projects in class
T 4/24
Ethnography Project Presentations
R 4/26
Ethnography Project Presentations
Submit Ethnography Project paper no later than Tuesday, 5/1/12 at 3 p.m.